454 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIET\. 



to put these methods into practice, as the scions would be sure to 

 drown, but, "sink or swim, survive or perish," I concluded to try it, 

 and my scions grew, and I was well pleased with their growth. 



In the cultivation of the plum, it is necessary that they should 

 have a rich, moist soil and clean, shallow cultivation, and an appH- 

 cation of rotted manure as often as once a year when first planted. 

 Set them not closer than sixteen feet apart each way, and plant not 

 less than from four to six different varieties, that they all may have 

 an equal chance to cross-fertilize each other, as many of our best va- 

 rieties of plums are self-sterile when planted by themselves. Don't 

 plant them in a long row ; the plum orchard should be as near square 

 as practicable, with the different varieties intermixed. 



MARKETING THE PLUIVJ. 



MARTIN PENNING, SLEEPY EYE. 



I live in Brown county, I might say in the plum garden, on the 

 banks of the Cottonwood river. Twenty-five years ago wagon loads 

 of plums could be taken, but today very few can be found. Hence 

 a demand for the improved plum. 



Raising the improved plum is becoming an important business. 

 We have to plant our better and improved plums in order to keep the 

 market supplied. We have many varieties of the improved plum 

 that are hardy and productive and also fine in quality. People are 

 not accustomed to them yet, but they will find a valuable fruit in the 

 same. I sell plums at a reasonable price — largest and best at $1.50 

 per bushel, and have a good demand for them. I sold plums until 

 the past four years in all kinds of vessels — in boxes, barrels, bushel 

 basket — anything that I could carry them in. I measured them out 

 to customers when selling them. Marketing plums in this way a 

 man always runs short in measure. This was not satisfactory to 

 me. Four years ago I wrote to Geo. B. Thayer & Co., Benton Har- 

 bor, Mich., for four dozen one-half bushel baskets and two dozen 

 covers. The baskets are nice and smooth inside, with two handles, 

 neat and strong. I paid at the time $1.00 per dozen and thirty cents 

 for covers — and, by the way, any man ordering baskets should not 

 forget to also order covers. I am well pleased with the basket and 

 find it a pleasure to market the plums in them — no measure required, 

 customer satisfied. I deliver my fruit from a platform spring wagon 

 — put ten baskets in the bottom and then put covers on them and 

 place ten more baskets on top. This makes ten bushels to the load. 

 I have sideboards on the wagon, same as a double box on a farm 

 wagon. 



